Ronin
by Kaji Batou
Summary: An AU where Gohan is born of an illegitimate union between the saiyajin warrior, Kakarotto, and Chi Chi. Gohan takes to space as a young child in an effort to find his long gone father, but is swept up into into a power play beyond his farthest dreams...
1. Prologue

**AU (Author's note): This is my first story in a long time. Please be nice!**

**First off I do not own DragonBall Z. Akira Toriyama and Funimation does. Ideas in this fic do belong to me, however. This is a Gohan centric fic, but I will try and develop the other characters as they pop up in the story. All of the characters that do pop up will be somewhat ooc, some more than others. Also, this fic will have intimations of rape and torture in it. I'm sorry, I know it's a touchy subject, but it's necessary for the story to develop. Anyway, read on!**

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The quiet beeping of the computer was his only company; steadily, once every ten seconds. The looming vastness of space beckoned outside the only window, with only one puny, insignificant being to witness its presence in this arena of space. Kakarotto looked out at the stars, delaying the moment he would put himself into hypersleep. Sleep meant that the nightmares would come; memories he would much rather forget. Sleep also meant that he would have to face his father that much sooner. He shivered.

The sixteen year old did not normally fear his father, nor anyone save King Vegeta, for that matter. Kakarotto did not so much fear his father at the moment, as he feared the consequences that would come when he arrived at his home planet. He cringed his eyes shut as the memories came unbidden…

***Begin flashback***

Kakarotto was excited-his first mission by himself! This planet wasn't supposed to be any trouble, so it would be a breeze to take care of. He might even have some time to try out local food! Kakarotto tried not to think about the deaths he would be responsible for; he usually tried to block the thoughts out of his mind, and so far he was succeeding. What excited him the most was to see how the locals interacted, what kind of food they had, what clothes they wore, and what they looked like, for that matter. Much to his parents' despair, Kakarotto always had a childlike aspect pop-up in his personality when it came to going off planet (sometimes it popped up on planet, too, much to the disgust of his brother). This time was no exception.

He briefly considered the data on the screen, before disregarding it. There weren't any power levels on the planet that would make him lose his breath, much less have to worry about tracking down right away. The number one agenda on his plate was, well, food. Hypersleep can really build up a guy's appetite, after all. Kakarotto almost felt guilty, looking down on the planet. The blues and whites and greens were quite gorgeous, and there wouldn't be anyone left on the planet to enjoy it, for awhile. He just hoped this planet had enough food to feed him, especially considering how much his stomach was grumbling. The name of the sphere in front of him certainly didn't do much to describe its contents. The computer of the little pod starting beeping more frequently as it prepared to begin the landing sequence. Kakarotto ignored it in favor of his ruminations on food. This may have been his first mission by himself, but he had been on many missions before, and he didn't expect this one to be any different, other than not having any grouches along to spoil the fun.

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Kakarotto surveyed the crater his pod had made when it landed. There weren't too many people around, according to his scanner, so he didn't think he would have to worry about it too much, but it's always better to be safe than sorry, as his father often quoted. He grudgingly covered up the little ship with some nearby plants, then flew off to find his favorite thing in the whole world (next to fighting): food. Little did he know this planet, Earth, would have more in store for him than he ever would have considered…

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**_A few days later…_**

These people were curious. There were a lot of them that looked just like him, but without the tail. There were also quite a few that were covered in fur, like he was in oozaru state, but not nearly as big or powerful. Idly he wondered if they tasted good…maybe they wouldn't notice if he just snagged a teensy little bite…?

When he had arrived at the first city, he was so taken aback by the sights that he forgot about food for awhile, and just wandered. Eventually his stomach urgently reminded him of one of his main goals on this world: try out alien food! The language barrier was a bit of an issue, however. The initial surveyors of this planet had learned the rudiments of the language, which Kakarotto had learned while he was sleeping on his way to the planet, but they sadly didn't have names for a lot of the food. In a lot of ways this society was similar to the one he had left on Vegeta-sei. There were bars and restaurants, and stores for replenishing supplies. He supposed that they had some form of currency that was required, but he figured that his patronage was delaying their deaths for that much longer, so he didn't worry about it. These puny, tailless individuals would try and stop him after he ate. Those were funny. It didn't take much to convince them to leave him alone.

He was only going to take a few days to sample the food before he purged the planet, but then he saw her. She was strong, unlike many of these other humans, and she was quite pretty, especially compared to a lot of the others in this particular city. Her scent, though…there was something about her scent Kakarotto found irresistible. It was sweet and alluring, yet had hints of something more…spicy. He found himself drawn to her, and even though he knew she was of another species, he couldn't stop himself from lusting after her. In the back of his head Kakarotto knew that he wouldn't have been sent off planet if he was expected to go into heat for the first time; he knew he was around the right age, but this was the time saiyajins were expected to begin looking for a mate. The first heat was the signal for male saiyajins to find potential mates and begin to vie for their attentions, while the females tried to attract the most desirable males.

A saiyajin off planet during his or her first heat was unthinkable. It just didn't happen. So Kakarotto ignored the little voice in the back of his head, and instead focused on her. She had begun to notice him. Eventually Kakarotto hoped she would more than notice him, and completely shoved his mission to the back of his mind. He knew, deep within, that this was much more important. His instincts screamed at him to just grab her and take her with him, all the way back to Vegeta-sei. He resisted, and decided to play along with the Earth customs of winning a woman.

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It took six months. Six months for Kakarotto to tour Earth. Six months for Kakarotto to win the attentions of the goddess known as Chi Chi. Six months for him to lose control of his instincts, and for his emotions to climax. Six months for him to destroy his life…

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It was fitting, that it had happened during one of the worst thunderstorms to ravage that portion of the planet in the memory of the inhabitants. Kakarotto stood, soaked to the bone, staring at the woman lying on the ground before him. He was in shock; his brain refused to cope with what had just happened. All he could do was stare. She was looking up at him, with those eyes…He couldn't take it anymore, and fled. He didn't even think. He just jumped in his spaceship and hurriedly initiated the take off sequence, leaving his human mate dying, if not already dead, on the planet below him. He knew he would be weak to cry, but he didn't really care…

***End flashback***

Kakarotto came back to himself, only halfway surprised that he was crying. He wanted to stay awake for the journey back to Vegeta-sei. Maybe he would die of hunger along the way, and he wouldn't have to think about her anymore…the computer solved his unspoken quandary, however, and initiated the injured passenger sequence, automatically putting the inhabitant of the lonely little space pod to sleep. The beeping continued, almost morosely, as if the computer was sympathizing with the hurt young man in its care.

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**Please review! And be nice, for that matter...**


	2. Medicine

**AN (author's note): Thanks for the reviews! I don't own DBZ...sadly...**

'_This is thinking.'_ "This is talking."

**Five years later…**

The sound of pounding feet echoed down the dark little alleyway, interrupted by a crash as a small figure careened into a pile of trash cans. Gohan staggered to his feet, glancing over his shoulder at his pursuers, and doubled his pace. His mother had warned him to avoid the backstreets of the city they called home, but he didn't feel like he had a choice. His mom was sick again, and it was up to Gohan to be the man of the house and buy medicine. He knew it was quicker to take the back way, and even at five years old he was pretty sure he could outrun the bad guys, or at least hide from them. He had been caught before; they had beaten him for running before taking all the money. Mom had a lot of trouble that week without her medicine-without it she couldn't go to work to earn more, and so she and Gohan had huddled together to wait out her bout of sickness. He wished he could help somehow, but nobody respectable would hire someone as young as he was.

He gritted his teeth and put on another burst of speed. He couldn't get caught this time; this time was different. His mom was sicker than he had ever seen her, and Gohan knew he couldn't let anything stop the precious medicine from reaching her. The dark gray stone of the buildings and pavement whizzed past, broken by the occasional alley entrance or homeless person. He ducked into a different alley, and lowered his head in preparation for the climb he would have to make over the fence at the end. This was the home stretch-if he could make it up and over the fence before his pursuers got to it, then Gohan would have time to disappear into the darkness before they got to the other side. That is, if they decided to follow him over the fence, at least. Gohan tensed his muscles and hopped smoothly up onto a dumpster along the edge of the alley. He held his breath and leapt for the lower edge of a fire escape ladder, mentally crossing his fingers in hopes of making it. This was where he had failed last time…

Cold iron gripped his fingers. He had made it! Without skipping a beat Gohan let himself swing forward, and let go when he reached the apex of the swing. He landed on top of the fence, and deftly hopped off and ducked down another alley, allowing himself the luxury of a smile at the curses of his pursuers and the rattling of the fence he had just left behind. '_It's a good thing okaasan isn't here, 'cause she'd probably knock them all out and wash their mouths with soap' _he thought.

Gohan sighed with relief as he finally made it to the pharmacy, and made his purchases without any major issues. The owner of the store, an elder grandmotherly figure, had become used to his monthly visits, and did not question why he was there by himself when he still needed help to reach the third shelf. She shook her head and sighed as he walked out the door with his precious package. Gohan ignored the muttering of the woman behind him, and considered the best way to get home. His pursuers would be on the lookout if he went through the back alleys again, and Gohan wasn't sure he could escape them again if they decided to go after him again. He took off trotting though the busy streets, avoiding obstacles and stares alike.

It took him a lot longer to get home going this way, but eventually Gohan recognized the beginning of the small, dingy neighborhood they lived in. It wasn't much, but he was happy to call it home. His mom seemed to like it, at least. Gohan smiled at the memory of their discovery of the park in the area. The trees and grass seemed to make his mom feel better almost as much as the medicine she had to take did. They had spent many hours just sitting in the park, relaxing. His mom had taught him the names of the trees and flowers, and they had made grass bracelets together until the sun had started setting. The onset of nightfall had only heightened the sense of peacefulness they were sharing. Gohan came back to himself with a start, and continued home. '_Maybe I should bring okaasan to the park after she takes her medicine to help her feel better'_ he thought.

He rounded the last corner and came in sight of the building where their apartment was, and froze. There were two police cars in front of the building, and as he was watching an ambulance came screaming up the little street and screeched to a halt next to the police cars. A sickening sense of dread filled his stomach like a lead weight, and he ran up and shoved his way through the small crowd of people that were gathering. The policemen were keeping people back from the entrance of the building, and Gohan turned around and hurriedly scanned the crowd for a familiar face. Surely his mom… he didn't see her. Gohan anxiously turned back to watch the entrance to the building. He knew it was cruel, but he desperately hoped that all the fuss was for their next door neighbor, a nosy, doddering elder woman who checked in on him and his mom occasionally. Twitching, he listened to the muttering of the crowd, hoping to get a clue as to what was going on.

A hand clamped down on his shoulder, causing him to jump. He turned and looked up at the owner of the hand, and froze. It was one of the policemen, and in the background he could see their old neighbor staring at him sadly. Gohan opened his mouth to ask the policeman what was going on, but was interrupted by a clattering noise as the paramedics came back down the steps in the entrance, gently carrying a gurney with his mom strapped to it.

**Cliffhanger! I know it's mean...also, I realize that so far in this story, I've been pretty mean to Chi Chi and co. Right now let's just say that having a half-saiyajin child took quite a toll on her, and left her susceptible to disease and illnesses. Read and review!  
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** Kiara-he didn't take Chi Chi with him 'cause he thought she was dying, or pretty much dead already. He also was in shock, and, well... later on in the story I'll go into more detail on his thoughts, etc., and what exactly happened. I don't want to spoil anything for you guys...**

** -thanks! Also, you'll see later on what happened...**

** Aisha-Yan-same answer to you as the other two-you'll see later ;)  
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